PSA vs. SGC turnaround update

[YankeeHotelFoxtrot]

Last PSA submission turnaround time: 1 year 1 month.

Last 4 SGC submissions at $26 per card (not 30): Never longer than 3 weeks shipped back to me in total time.

[BuzzD]

Bobby, what order is missing?

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by BuzzD

Bobby, what order is missing?

One of the supplemental "golden oldies" orders....around 123 cards. Over $5,000 worth.

[BuzzD]

Wow, did they ever acknowledge receipt of the order or was it graded and they never got it to you?

[chalupacollects]

I had submitted a Collectors Club submission to PSA and was delivered to them on 3/2/2021. Shipped back to me on 6/24/21. Received on 6/26. So it would seem they are catching up considering the complete date chart showed September 2020 for those submissions...

[YazFenway08]

I just recently submitted my first ever SGC order

They received on July 7…now in “post grading process” as of today.

My question…one of the earlier posters shared their grades electronically…do these become available on their website through the login portal at the “post grading” stage? Or do they just send an email notifying you? Just curious because I don’t see anything like that and assumed they release the grades well in advance of shipping back based on the earlier posts.

[Kutcher55]

I just sent my first cards in ever for grading. Been back in this hobby for two years now and never wanted to wait that long. But with SGC turnaround reportedly 20-25 days, I had five items that I felt barely justified the $30 price tag. Also, it's partly as an experiment out of genuine curiosity.

I agree that pound for pound you get better resale value with PSA, especially after 1960 or so. But I think there are plenty of exceptions to that rule and most (not all) collectors view SGC as legit and on par or even tougher than PSA when it comes to grading standards. Also with the issues surrounding PSA, there's no guarantee their slabs will always carry a premium over SGC.

Anyway, two of my five items are Led Zeppelin 1975 Panini stickers that I just want slabbed, because led zep is the greatest rock band of all time (IMO) and I think the stickers will go up in value after Page and Plant pass away. But really I just want them slabbed because they will be safe and I want them as part of my collection because again it's Led Zeppelin -- although the fact that they are Panini which is a name in the industry made me think they do have collector value. Plus they are just cool and usually if I think something is cool other collectors do which = value.

The other three cards are kind of borderline subs since I hardly ever spend good money for raw. They are a Walter Payton RC that I hope gets a 4 or better (it has color fading otherwise it could be a 6), and a couple of 1941 playballs (Bill Dickey and Jimmy Foxx) that should be in the 2-4 range. In all three cases as long as I don't get "As" for them then the $30 ($35 with tax, shipping etc) will be worth it.

Clearly not getting rich with this move, but turnaround time is a massive factor. Plus SGC customer service got back to me within a couple of hours when I was curious if they would slab my LZ cards. Impressive. This was all enough to get me to pull the lever after I debated doing this for a long time.

Who wants to be without their cards for that long unless you are in this almost entirely to make $?

[Lorewalker]

Originally Posted by BuzzD

Wow, did they ever acknowledge receipt of the order or was it graded and they never got it to you?

https://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=304913

[Lorewalker]

Even if SGC sells for less than PSA, if they can get your cards back to you in a week or two compared to PSA who is taking months to over a year, as a seller that has to be a viable option.

For collectors I get not wanting to pay $30 per card but it could be a year or longer before we ever see PSA grading for less than $30 a card.

[YazFenway08]

Chase just beat me to it. The time value part is real and I think the re-sale spreads might just narrow a bit, at least for golden era vintage.

I love the way cards look in SGC and mostly collect that way…but always try to think about future sales/value whether for me, my heirs, etc. Personally, I am leaning on sending all my pre-1980ish to SGC and everything newer waiting on PSA. But I have just assumed we never see sub-$25 grading again since SGC could be doing it now with these pretty impressive turnarounds. They clearly have staffed up to accommodate and could take a bit of that bulk submission business if they wanted it.